Josh Lanyon ~ Lone Star
From: Carina Press

Review of: Josh Lanyon ~ Death Of A Pirate King

Marquesate ~ Basic Training
From: MLR Press

Review of: Marquesate ~ Her Majesty’s Men

K.A. Mitchell ~ Bad Boyfriend
From: Samhain Publishing

Sarah over at Rain On The Roof is doing her best of 2011. I am impressed because frankly I cannot even begin to do one. I think the closest I got was adding Marquesate ~ Her Majesty’s Men to my Christmas must have eBook list.

So of course I am going to have to buy that other Marquesate book that Sarah mentioned in her list along with this K.A. Mitchell number. There you go Sarah and I both like Marquesate. That’s two whole Military Gay Romance books by the same author, buy now, go!

The facts are too many Gay Romances this year even from some of the top epublishers blew the fuck up over content editing. Lots of lazy drawn out highly noticeable instances of telling the reader instead of showing. The authors in many cases had written top heavy (Too many setup chapters) or bottom heavy (Too many closing chapters to get to their idea of an HEA) stories with parts in need of trimming and/or fleshing out and the Editors were obviously absent to tell them to fix the content issues. Then in the “candy wrapper” crew you have Gay Romance epubs like Dreamspinner getting away with what seems to be absolutely no editing or direction at all. I simply refuse to buy from them anymore because they are tragic and from their lame excuses you know, they know, they are selling rough drafts.

When an epub “Editor” (I use that term loosely… Because when did pushing a button in a Spell Checker and maybe one of those new Grammar Checkers qualify you as an Editor?) has no clue what the basic “no brainer” difference is between a Gay Romance and your typical everyday Gay Fiction and that slapping on a few chapters at the end for a quick sex scene and maybe a kiss does not make up for having no focus on any developing relationship arc the rest of the book well I just have no time for pathetic excuses or people who promote themselves as selling “Gay Romance” trying to tell me their books suddenly do not have to follow “Romance rules” because they are now “Dark” or “M/M” or whatever newly made up definition they want to use mid-conversation…

Yeah, whatever you freaking prima donna. If you cannot prove you know what something is in the first place and sell it to readers properly labeled and edited how can we trust you to know how to get anything else right?

Sure it’s my opinion, and a few others mind you, but I am first and foremost a Romance reader of both traditional Straight and the newer Gay type of books for years now and I have a great deal more experience than these clowns even reading Gay Fiction growing up back in the good old days when we had Gay Fiction or as they like to call it now Gay Lit writers worth reading so get the hell out of my face with the whole “I don’t understand”. I might be a dinosaur but you are a fucking putz so fuck you!

Anyway, 2011 for me was frankly a disappointment when it came to discovering new writers to talk about because unfortunately in most cases the authors I thought had something going for them chose to be published by crappy “candy wrapper” epubs with no real Editors in sight to say the least. The few authors I talked to honestly about this issue knew they were choosing this and made some off the wall excuse for it. How do you even begin to recommend that mess? I can’t, that’s how. I won’t. If you want to stay amateur in thinly veiled fan fiction land with the pretty covers and nothing else to offer. I’ll let someone else shower charity upon you precious. Oh, she’s such a nice person even though she knows she is ripping off her readers with unedited rough drafts and bare outlines of stories. Isn’t that special?

Pretty pictures might make the sale but your unedited story was a big old fail.

Catch me I’m bustin a rhyme! Don’t worry Pookie there is always the idiot zombies on Goodreads that will tell you how great you are and slather you with endless five star reviews and make excuses for every failure. You won’t learn anything and your writing will still be packaged like so much fan fiction but hey the fanbois are there for your little “self pubbing” ego boo when in reality none of that makes up for a professional Editor that tells you “no” often and never let’s you off the hook and a couple of really honest critique groups that know where you live and will hound you till you get it right.

From what I have seen and been involved in just the few years of blogging about Gay Romance if you are trying to do this all by yourself with no professional help and without any honest interactions or confrontations to your vanity you are so fucked. Shallow back patting and social niceties are for dinner parties not books. Smart bitches expect an honest answer even if it means they might have to go back to the drawing board.

So no big 2011 lists from me. It would be too short to matter.

Heidi Cullinan ~ Nowhere Ranch
From: Loose Id

Rainbow Awards

Full Review: Heidi Cullinan ~ Nowhere Ranch

K.Z. Snow ~ Visible Friend
From: Dreamspinner Press

From: Rainbow Awards

Go Anne Cain!

Ensan Case ~ Wingmen
1979 Avon
From: Cheyenne Publishing

Speak It’s Name Review

Early World War 2 Gay Romance
Reprint announced February 2012

Treva Harte ~ Home (Alpha3)
From: Loose Id

Cause you’re hot then you’re cold
You’re yes then you’re no
You’re in and you’re out
You’re up and you’re down
You’re wrong when it’s right
It’s black and it’s white
We fight, we break up
We kiss, we make up
Katy Perry ~ Hot N Cold

Sometimes telling a good story is not so much about what you write about but what you choose not to write about. Especially when it comes to Ménage Romance and issues concerning sexuality and who is doing whom and why. Treva Harte just seems to me to stand out from the pack. I love her Alpha series but as many people have pointed out to me again and again Home is the best of the bunch and I have to agree.

None of Treva’s characters in this series strike me as necessarily in control but they are not all innocent victims either. In fact I would say they seem, both the men and the women, more likely to be in a barroom brawl than a romance at any given moment. They are raw and they are who they are with no excuses. I like that.

Even so, Rome smelled like sex and — beer. Mia’s nose wrinkled.
“Are you drunk, Rome?”
“Not enough, baby.”
She would have left then, although it was her room and she was naked, but she realized there was something else Rome smelled like. Sex and alcohol and tears.
Oh no. It couldn’t be. Rome was tough and macho. She might be tempted — had always been a little tempted — by the virile Rome. She’d always been able to resist that Rome. But this Rome? She’d always been a sucker for the injured.
Mia put her hand on Rome’s shoulder, and he flinched, just slightly.
Definitely there had been tears.
“Who hurt you, Rome? What’s wrong?”
“No one. Nothing.”
“Stop being so manly for a minute. You came here for a reason. If you aren’t going to talk, why bother?”
“What makes you think I came here to talk? And fuck it if I’m too manly for you.” He looked down at the floor. “Maybe that was Grey’s problem. I’m too manly. Or not enough.”
His laugh sounded like a sob and, as if he realized it, Rome cut it off in the middle and took a deep breath instead.
“Grey?”
“I don’t want to talk about Grey. I don’t give a damn about Grey right now.”
“I don’t think that’s true, Rome. I’ve always known how much you worshipped him.” Mia could never figure out what anyone saw in that silent, rather menacing beta, but then he probably saw even less in her. He never even talked to her. Everyone knew he didn’t give a damn about women.
Rome went back to staring at her, as intensely as before. “That’s bull. I never worshiped anyone. Except — well — look at you, all stripped down and built like a goddess. I could worship you.”
He might be avoiding the issue but it worked. Mia knew she was blushing. She liked to ignore her looks since they meant nothing. Omegas didn’t mate. Omegas only had sex if the higher ups in the pack demanded it of them, but that wasn’t an issue in this pack. Her looks didn’t matter to anyone. In fact, lately she’d almost forgotten what she looked like — which might be why she was here, defenseless in front of a hungry were who was definitely noticing her appearance.
“I look like a woman. What of it?”
Sex. The smell of sex strengthened. Mia licked her lips and tried to ease the dryness in her throat.
“What of it? Jesus, Mia, you’ve got breasts like a porno star’s, except they’re real.” Rome came closer and Mia stiffened. He didn’t touch. But the way he looked made her as itchy as if he had. “And your ass. That is one fine ass.” He stopped and whispered, “I even like those big, big eyes of yours, staring at me like I’m going to gobble you up.”
The big, bad wolf had definitely arrived tonight. Mia took a step backward and tried to rally. “You have the hots for Grey. I’m sorry if you two had a fight, but why run to me?” ~ Page 18

Treva refuses to label anyone one thing or the other sexually throughout the whole series and it really shows in Home. Sure you as the reader can figure out who they love. It is not that the characters are unsure of their sexuality just that they do not waste time worrying about it. It comes across to me at least as feeling somewhat raw and abrupt but also organic in the way it gets presented. No pages and pages of characters angsting over whom they are attracted to or why. No “Gay for you”, no “Straight for you”, no mitigating circumstances in sight. I find this refreshing.

Now in regards to this being a Ménage Romance I do find similarities with Samantha Kane’s The Courage To Love.

There is a charismatic focus amongst the three lovers. In The Courage To Love it was Jason who had the title, money, and the need to wed and have kids along with a best buddy who he had deeper feelings for. Here in Home the main focus is Rome who is the lone wolf, the outcast Alpha, the wild card, and someone who both Grey and Mia are sexually interested in. Treva twists the Alpha role here by making Rome younger and more unsure of himself and his role in the ménage thus giving Grey a chance even as a Beta of contributing age and experience and stability to the threesome.

We also see the similarity where even though Rome has in the past made a move to seduce Grey he was rebuffed and he in turn rebuffed Mia ultimately making the romance story told here about discovering their mutual desires and forming some type of trust in order to be a “balanced” ménage. So there is no real pre-existing relationship in the way of us enjoying what does happen in the process of building a relationship that involves all three of them.

So “clarity” is in the rather blunt acceptance they have of their sexuality. “Balance” comes from Rome being a young charismatic yet inexperienced Alpha which allows them all to contribute something to the ménage.

What is left is “benefit” and that mostly comes from outside the threesome. Both of their packs benefit from these three mating and having children. Treva again twists the reasons here to give a “making it work” for the good of everyone else feel to the story. This also provides the internal problems each member has to forming a relationship that will involve kids and why they are participating.

Grade A example Treva on how writing any type of romance even a ménage does not mean having to provide full explanations for every character’s motivations. Some people may be turned off on how raw this comes across as since there is no couching “emo” moments but I say mapping it all out for pages upon pages of boring pointless emotionally reasoned drivel will kick me out of a story quicker than adding a glossary or footnotes. Treva did far more to convince me this whole thing could work by carefully orchestrating around providing obvious compensating benefits that did not need such explanation to begin with.

Even when bisexuality shows up in a romance the story does not have to suddenly stop and bore me to death with pop psychology gimmicks or half-assed teary eyed excuses. If I wanted a fucking “after school special” I would be reading dead tree publishers not ePublishers.

When in doubt just throw it out and tell me the damn story you want to tell. Thanks Treva, the queen of show, not tell!

Samantha Kane ~ The Courage To Love (Brothers In Arms 1)
From: Ellora’s Cave

A Free eBook From Ellora’s Cave This Month!

Whenever I think of a really good representation of the type of Ménage Romance story I want to read I keep coming back to this one. The Courage To Love just seems to do so many things really well and in a small amount of space. Here let me show you…

When Tony touched Jason’s arm, the skin was hot and damp with sweat. Jason looked over at Tony, his eyes smoldering. As he stared at Tony, he pulled out of Kate and then thrust into her hard, making her cry out. Tony’s breathing became labored, watching him. God, he loved to watch Jason fuck a woman, loved to touch him while he fucked. Leaving his hand on Jason’s arm, caressing the bulging muscles there, Tony leaned down and kissed Kate’s shoulder. She looked over at him with dazed eyes, shuddering with each thrust of Jason’s hard cock inside her.
“Kiss me, Kate, kiss me while Jason fucks you,” Tony breathed in her ear.
Kate immediately reached for Tony with her mouth. There was no hesitation, no worry over wrong or right. Tony was pleased with her acceptance of the two of them. Apparently it felt right to her, just as it did to him and Jason. It was as if suddenly all the pieces of a puzzle fit together.
He met her halfway for the kiss, and kissed her long and tenderly. His mouth sipped at hers, his tongue dipped in to taste, invited her to taste him, his teeth nibbled at her lips. It was a deliberate contrast to the hard, rough fucking that Jason was giving her. Her whole body shook with each of his thrusts. He had forced her legs up around his waist, and was holding her hips tight to him with one hand, while still bracing himself up with the other.
Tony watched him out of the corner of his eye while he kissed Kate. Jason fucking was a vision of brute strength, dominance, sheer physical beauty. It made Tony hot and hard to watch him, to touch him and feel the harsh strength of his thrusts. When they were fucking together, Tony could feel Jason inside a woman, his cock slamming up against his own in there, and it drove him wild. When they watched one another, Tony preferred to go second, so he could watch Jason. Watching him first made Tony a better lover. ~ Page 22

See! I mean just think of all the conversations you have heard lately about Erotic Romance and what it is and how we should define it and why it has an important place in Romance and then go back and read that single moment in the book. No wonder those Passionate Plume folks nominated it.

But that’s not all!

This being a series I can then take the fact the same author wrote several other variations on this theme and compare and contrast why I like The Courage To Love better than say one of her later books like At Love’s Command. Now why would I have not chosen that one? Samantha Kane’s writing is better, it is stronger and all that in At Love’s Command. Which leads me to this whole list of reviews I am writing about Ménage Romance because thinking about this one series made me start analyzing the differences between what worked and what did not and why. The why becomes apparent when you start adding all my favorite books together.

I think the first thing I figured out was the “balance” (You will hear me use this word often from now on out so beware.) in the relationship between the three players here. Jason and Tony are close close friends who have shared sex with other women but they are not lovers. They have no defined sexual relationship or mutually negotiated emotional baggage and nothing that the establishment of a ménage relationship with Kate would undermine or betray.

I think this is key since we are reading a romance first and foremost so things like undermining and betrayal of an existing relationship just won’t work. Sure, I know in the real world that most folks in a ménage relationship start with a couple and then renegotiate by adding someone. BUT! One thing I have learned from reading romance is that real world realities do not always make great reading. The more convoluted and complex dynamics it takes to get even a typical couple together can be off putting so adding the whole extra baggage of an established relationship into a Ménage Romance where you have three different sides just brings with it too many possible questions for me the reader.

Remember “balance” the word I use? Well, the minute I think that someone in the story is nothing more than an added third wheel or is there for the selfish fulfillment of the wants of one party of the existing couple bringing with it the unsaid threat of him or her leaving… Well, in my opinion there is no balance there and I just find I cannot buy into an HEA for the Ménage Romance. That is just the way I read it folks.

Samantha Kane defined yet another important factor though in this story and showed character growth and benefit constantly through out the Ménage Romance. Here let me show you…

He turned to walk away, and Tony’s frustration got the better of him. “It is not settled,” he growled, and grabbing Jason, spun him and shoved him against the wall. He fell against him to hold him there, and then did what he’d wanted to do for days. He kissed him. Holding Jason’s shoulders to the wall, Tony pressed his mouth furiously against the other man’s. Jason’s lips were pushed open in the assault and Tony thrust his tongue inside his mouth, mad with grief over what they had come to.
Jason allowed the kiss, holding tight to Tony’s waist. When Tony pulled away, both men were breathing heavily. You could have heard a pin drop in the ensuing silence.
“So it’s that way, is it?” Jason asked quietly.
Tony lowered his head until his forehead rested against Jason’s. “Yes, yes, I suppose it is,” he whispered.
Suddenly Tony felt Jason’s hand grabbing his hair and pulling his head up, and he was spun around until his back was against the wall. Jason kept his grip on Tony’s hair, pressing hard against him. He leaned in and spoke quietly in his ear.
“Do you think I would risk losing this? You and Kate, and what we can have together? I want this, Tony, I want this life with you both so badly I can taste it. No, darling, I won’t die tomorrow. I won’t allow it. I’ll be here, and you’ll have to live up to this promise.”
He had dragged his mouth across Tony’s cheek so the last word was spoken against his lips. Then he kissed him, his lips soft against Tony’s. The kiss was more searing for its tenderness, and Tony’s mouth opened on a sigh. Jason licked into his mouth, rubbing against his tongue and encouraging Tony to do the same. The kiss quickly escalated, and Tony wrapped his arms around Jason, reveling in the hard feel of him, the taste of him, the sheer joy of having him like this. He tasted of coffee and the sweet marmalade he favored every morning, and Jason.
Jason broke the kiss slowly. He looked at Tony, his desire clearly written on his face. They stared at each other for a few moments, and Tony gradually became aware of the other men in the room, who had turned away to give them some privacy.
“Jason,” he murmured.
“Yes, Tony.” Jason’s reply was soft, but ardent. “Yes, Tony, I want this. And by God, I’m going to have it. Robertson isn’t going to stop me.” ~ Page 85

So there you go. Samantha Kane showed that Kate was finding benefit and redemption by her involvement in the ménage by finding protection and social standing in another established group. While the guys are shown benefiting from the ménage by a deepening of the their close friendship by becoming lovers. All of that very understandable and important to each of them. They all gain something emotionally fulfilling beyond the shared sex which is what we want in any romance.

So The Courage To Love stands for me as a textbook Grade A. As an Erotic Romance and as a Ménage Romance it just works. I like to say this story has strong bones. In my opinion Samantha Kane could strip away the Regency garb and put it in Western gear or a kilt and she still would have a good Romance story here.

That may piss off some of the historical accuracy mavens out there. I guess in the end I read for the romance not the historical accuracy and although some blunders are show stoppers but if the romance story itself is good a lot of inaccuracy is simply forgiven or ignored. Like it or not.

In the end I know when I read something if it all works because it comes across so effortless. This book is effortless from beginning to end and yet I can see the focus clearly from the start. The fact there is constant balance, benefit, and clarity helps sell the Ménage Romance HEA.

I was going to choose something that did not work for the next review but I think I will keep going to show you guys a bit more about “balance” in Ménage Romance and how it works for me. Treva you are so next.

Marquesate ~ Her Majesty’s Men
From: Camouflage Press

“Fuck!” Tom hissed between his teeth. Didn’t care. Didn’t give a damn about the consequences, had to seize the moment. Kill Alex. Fuck Alex. All the same. Wouldn’t make a difference. Blind red fury turned into lust. Instantly.
Using the second of surprise, he threw his weight to the side. Arms locked, taking the greater body with him, rolling until he came on top. Grinding his hips into Alex’s. Hard, brutal, as aggressive as the kicks and punches beforehand.
Disbelief lingered in Alex’s body, trapped with his back on the muddy ground. Tom didn’t understand nor cared nor wanted to know why there was still no reaction, only parted lips, harsh, near terror- struck shell-shocked breathing and wide eyed stare.
He came crashing down onto Alex’s face with lips and teeth, biting and tearing at the other. Assaulted the mouth, but his tongue conquered unhindered. Didn’t have to force himself inside the copper taste of hatred, anger, lust and pain. Sweeping unopposed into the heat, swallowing Alex’s distressed groans.
Tom’s blood smeared hands held onto broad shoulders. Forcing down, preventing resistance.
Which never came.
Riding the massive body; humping, grinding, wanting, needing, more more more! Own cock maddeningly hard. It had been three fucking years and the obsession had grown until it exploded in revulsion some weeks ago. Addicted greed, roughly and viciously taken.
Suddenly a harsh, guttural groan, terrifying in its primal need, when Alex jerked into violent action. Hands clutching, tearing, and Tom’s body was abruptly taken, wrapped in strong limbs, held in the other’s relentless grip.
Tom’s hips bucked up, grinding brutally into Alex’s, as he reciprocated in kind. Two men. Wild. Bruised. Bloodied. Hurting. Wanting.
Tom’s brain imploded.
Breathing frantically, wretched sounds mixed with sharp pants from Alex, while the air steamed around their desperate bodies. Writhing, clutching at each other’s jacket, tunic, belt. Mindlessly thrusting.
Ecstasy.
Alex’s growls reverberated in Tom’s head as tongue and teeth consumed him, swallowed him, split him open, while he tore the other raw in return. Tasting flesh and blood, icy cold, burning heat, mud, and sweat. ~ Page 24

Wow um…First thought.

Butch porn anyone?

This thing is butcher than a relationship between two angry southern bull dykes. After living in North Carolina for a couple of years now I have come to the conclusion that the only truly masculine gay leather men in the south are lesbian. I mean they’re the ones having a drink during daylight hours at the gay bars and riding around in pickup trucks with gay flag stickers plastered front and center and I have never seen one of them doing drag. It makes you think.

Those first two sex scenes are the most violent things I have read in a Gay Romance in… I don’t actually remember anything that violent or sexy in a Gay Romance I have read recently and that includes Rachel Haimowitz ~ Anchored: Belonging and let me just say I liked this way more bettererererer.

Marquesate found the masculine butch knob and twisted the dang thing all the way up to 11.

So yes, this story is very different than most of the insta-love, kissy face, “Straight To Gay/Gay For You” romances I have been reading lately.

The question is… is it any better than a kissy face romance?

You thought you were going to get out of the patented Teddypig “Straight To Gay/Gay For You” lecture I bet?

Listen writers and readers of Gay Romance out there. When you build a Gay Romance on “Straight To Gay/Gay For You” you build your house on sand.

It’s a transitory conditional state in my opinion.

I Teddypig swear to tell you the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truthiness of the matter at hand. The truth is I see an HFN here because of the whole “Straight To Gay/Gay For You” storyline just leaves me with that idea.

Once you figure out you are gay that’s just the first step. It has nothing to do with coming out or accepting yourself or yellow moons, orange stars, and green clovers. It’s not magic you know! People change all the time when they are young and learning new things about themselves and their changing relationships reflect that fact.

So the guy going to sleep straight and waking up gay is going to have to redefine for himself who he is and what he wants in life and no matter how physically strong he is or butch he is… well, none of that has anything to do with how internally capable he is of dealing with being gay.

This is how Republican politicians caught having their willies sucked in airport restrooms and other closet cases are born.

What I am saying is Alex will probably wind up the kid in the candy store and going out in search of what he enjoys while Tom, who is already gay, will still be just Tom. That’s life.

Grade B for being very different than other “Straight To Gay/Gay For You” stories in this genre.

Erastes ~ Junction X
From: Cheyenne Publishing

Looky what I gots!